Richard Casper is a United States Marine Veteran, Purple Heart recipient, songwriter, and entrepreneur. He is the co-founder of We Should Write Sometime, a tech start-up that helps songwriters connect globally, and CreatiVets, a nonprofit that empowers wounded veterans to heal through the arts and music. As a songwriter, Richard has over 80 placements in film and television and has had songs released by Justin Moore, Craig Morgan, Aaron Lewis, Vince Gill, Granger Smith, and more.Richard was awarded the CNN Hero award in 2022, named one of TIME Magazine’s Next Generation Leaders of 2017, and is the subject of TIME’s documentary Evidence of Things Unseen. He was recognized as the 2024 Southern of the Year by Southern Living Magazine. For his work with veterans, he received recognition from President George W. Bush in 2017 and the Bush Institute for his passion and dedication to helping combat veterans. He was also one of thirty-three scholars from across the country selected for The Bush Institute’s Stand-To Veteran Leadership Program. His inspiring story and contributions have been highlighted by major media outlets, including The Kelly Clarkson Show, the CMA Awards, Fox & Friends, The Today Show and many more.Richard served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 2003 to 2007. During his 2006–2007 deployment in Iraq, he survived four IED blasts, resulting in a left-traumatic brain injury. After nearly giving up, he discovered art and songwriting as therapeutic forms of expression and subsequently graduated from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Drawing from his own experiences, he developed art and songwriting programs for CreatiVets to help other wounded veterans heal. In 2020, he signed a deal with Big Machine Records to begin releasing veteran-created music worldwide, and he is currently working on a Prescription Music platform aimed at transforming how individuals open up about traumatic experiences.Richard has taught art at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Virginia Commonwealth University, Belmont University, and the University of Southern California. He is a keynote speaker, artist, and entrepreneur who resides in Nashville, TN, with his wife Ashley, son Barrett, and daughter Quinn.